World Heritage sites

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He Came, He Parkoured, He Broke an Ancient Building

Devon McIntosh, 23, part of UK's Team Phat, was filmed damaging structure in Italian city of Matera

(Newser) - A UK parkour group that says it's already been banned from Venice for its stunts has struck again, this time in another Italian city. Euronews reports that Devon McIntosh, 23, one of nine on the Team Phat sports team, was recently captured on video jumping from a building in...

Stonehenge Vandals Strike Ahead of Solstice

Environmental activists toss orange powder at monument ahead of annual event

(Newser) - A day before celebrations to honor the summer solstice at Britain's iconic Stonehenge, the monument received a surprise paint job. Environmental activists sprayed what authorities described as orange paint at two of the monument's megaliths on Wednesday, per the BBC . A video shared by the Just Stop Oil...

In Ancient Pompeii, This Was a Conversation Starter

Newly uncovered frescoes in ancient banquet hall depict Trojan War characters

(Newser) - Archaeologists excavating new sites in Pompeii have uncovered a sumptuous banquet hall decorated with intricately frescoed mythological characters inspired by the Trojan War, officials said Thursday, per the AP . The hall, which features a mosaic floor, was uncovered as part of a project to shore up the areas dividing the...

Venice May Soon Be Labeled 'Endangered'

City isn't doing enough to counter risk of damage from tourists, climate change, UNESCO says

(Newser) - Venice isn't doing enough to protect its cultural heritage, according to experts at UNESCO, who are recommending that the Italian city and its lagoon be added to a list of endangered World Heritage sites. Mass tourism, overdevelopment, and rising sea levels linked to climate change put the site at...

Bulldozers, Looting Reported at Mexico's Teotihuacan

Private building crews said to have chased away cops

(Newser) - Mexico's government says private building crews are refusing to stop work that threatens one of the most popular tourist attractions in the country, ancient Teotihuacan. At least 25 structures at the protected pre-Aztec site boasting twin pyramids and "hundreds of smaller, more remote, and often unexplored sites "...

Trump Threat About Iranian Cultural Sites Is Controversial

World bodies have prohibited attacks on heritage sites

(Newser) - Iran's ancient and rich cultural landscape has become a potential US military target as Washington and Tehran lob threats and take steps toward a possible open conflict, the AP reports. President Trump tweeted Saturday that the US has a list of 52 potential targets should Iran retaliate for the...

'Sorrow Beyond Imagination': Japan's Shuri Castle Burns

Okinawa landmark was a World Heritage Site

(Newser) - A castle first built centuries before Okinawa was annexed by Japan has been devastated by fire. Police say a fire that broke out around 2:30am Friday has destroyed much of Shuri Castle, which was erected under the Ryukyu Dynasty around 500 years ago, the Guardian reports. The wooden structure,...

UNESCO List Gets New Sites, Cries of Anti-Semitism Follow

Statement follows decision recognizing Palestinian site

(Newser) - The West Bank city of Hebron's Old Town, as well a religious site it houses, were added to the UNESCO list of world heritage in danger in a 12-3 decision in Poland on Friday, drawing praise from Palestinians and outrage from Israelis. Israel, which claims Hebron as the birthplace...

Humans Taking a Toll on 100 World Heritage Sites
Humans Taking a Toll on
100 World Heritage Sites
NEW STUDY
Jan 31, 2017 3:42 PM CST

Humans Taking a Toll on 100 World Heritage Sites

New study raises alarm on degradation

(Newser) - Almost half of all natural world heritage sites are slowly being degraded, and experts have a clear suspect: humans. A study based on the Human Footprint Index—which evaluates agriculture, infrastructure, population density, and other factors—identifies more than 100 of 229 sites that are suffering from human activities, reports...

Retired American May Be World's Busiest Traveler

Checking off destinations has become a full-time hobby for Don Parrish

(Newser) - When a man in Illinois retired from Bell Labs just over 10 years ago, he decided it was time to see the world. Only Don Parrish really meant that—he wanted to "see everything," and he's since flown some 5 million miles, visited all 193 UN member...

Iraq's 'Garden of Eden' Added to Prestigious List

Wetlands of southern Iraq are one of 12 new UNESCO world heritage sites

(Newser) - Fed by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, vast and remote wetlands along the border with Iran in southern Iraq that are considered to be the biblical "Garden of Eden" have just been named a UNESCO world heritage site, the United Nations reports. Among the 12 new sites added to...

Alamo Is First Texan World Heritage Site

But UN isn't in control of site, officials stress

(Newser) - "Remember the Alamo" is now a United Nations directive as well as a rallying cry. The San Antonio site and four other Spanish Colonial missions in the area have been designated UNESCO World Heritage sites for their "outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common heritage of humanity,...

Report: ISIS Now Controls 50% of Syria

Destroying priceless artifacts in Palmyra may be a top priority

(Newser) - Two big ISIS headlines this morning: The first, an assertion by the director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights that the militants "now control 50% of Syria." The group estimates ISIS holds about 37,000 square miles, an area about the size of Indiana . The Guardian reports...

UN: Sites From 'Dawn of Civilization' Ruined in Syria

Satellite images show war devastation of 290 cultural heritage sites

(Newser) - Insurgents camping inside the 900-year-old Crac des Chevaliers Crusader medieval castle and snipers firing from atop Aleppo's Citadel illustrate the sad plight of Syria's oldest cultural heritage sites—some of them dating back to what Reuters calls the "dawn of civilization." Satellite images have revealed that...

Mysterious Stone Spheres to Be Protected

They join more than 1K sites now on UN list of World Heritage sites

(Newser) - The planet now has more than 1,000 UNESCO World Heritage Sites : places "of outstanding value to humanity" that UNESCO helps to safeguard and preserve. The World Heritage Committee wrapped up its 38th session on Wednesday by adding 26 sites to its list and expanding four more; that list...

6 Countries Seek Protection for Remarkable Road

Qhapaq Nan among 12 sites to be reviewed this week by World Heritage Committee

(Newser) - A 3,000-year-old road that runs from Colombia to Chile and winds through four other countries along the way is officially seeking protection. The South American countries (Peru, Ecuador, Argentina, and Bolivia are also among them) have banded together to ask that 435 miles of the Qhapaq Ñan or...

UN to Australia: You Have Year to Protect Barrier Reef

Will be listed as 'in danger' if government doesn't curb development, pollution

(Newser) - Australia's Great Barrier Reef may lose its world heritage status if the country doesn't clean up its act. UNESCO has postponed a decision to put the 133,000-square-mile coral reef system on its " World Heritage in Danger " list, giving the Australian and Queensland governments a year...

Extremists Smash More Timbuktu Sites

'World heritage doesn't exist,' Ansar Dine fighters say

(Newser) - Islamic extremists destroying historic sites in the ancient city of Timbuktu have vowed to keep going until there's nothing left. Gunmen in the Malian city destroyed two tombs at the 700-year-old Djingareyber mosque yesterday, adding to a trail of destruction which includes the mausoleums of numerous Islamic saints, considered...

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